ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. clip — for paper
  5. spell — a short time
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cap — a hat
  8. stock — goods
  9. prune — to trim
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. cap — a lid
  13. stock — shares
  14. spell — magic
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. wound — an injury
  18. clip — to cut
  19. prune — to trim
  20. clip — a video
  21. cap — of ice
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wake — a trail
  24. spell — letters

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com